Beyond the DJ Booth
Brian B and Joe Bunn tackle questions about the private event DJ industry, share music, gear/gadgets, and stories from their events.
Beyond the DJ Booth
Booked Solid, Burned Out, and Battling Sugar Withdrawal
Ever feel like the daily grind is getting more expensive? You're not alone. Brian B kicks off this episode sharing how he's been booking double gigs in Florida's sweltering heat to keep up with rising mortgage payments and private school tuition costs. The financial reality of today's economy has many DJs pushing their limits, forcing tough decisions about travel schedules and family time.
The conversation takes a sharp turn when Joe recounts his recent run-in with a particularly difficult wedding planner. Despite the bride and groom planning their wedding date around having him specifically, this planner created unnecessary tension throughout what should have been a seamless event. It's a raw look at the interpersonal challenges that can transform an A-level wedding into a B-level experience, regardless of how well the DJ performs.
Music lovers will find gold in this episode as Brian shares five tracks that have been absolutely destroying his dance floors lately. From Callum Scott's "Biblical" for dinner sets to a masterful Am I Wrong/Titanium blend for peak hour, these tested selections provide immediate value for DJs looking to refresh their playlists. The guys discuss what makes these tracks work and when to drop them for maximum impact.
The most personal segment comes when Joe reveals his dramatic lifestyle change after receiving concerning health test results. At 53, he's eliminated sugar and starch completely from his diet after learning he's pre-diabetic despite his regular workout routine. His candid discussion about withdrawal symptoms, changing deeply ingrained habits, and navigating food choices while working events offers a vulnerable look at the challenges of prioritizing health in a profession that often runs counter to healthy routines.
Whether you're struggling with rising costs, difficult vendors, music selection, or health challenges, this episode delivers honest conversation about the realities beyond the DJ booth. Subscribe now and join the community of professionals navigating these same waters every weekend.
RESOURCES & LINKS
Our website. Please leave a review! - https://www.beyondthedjbooth.com/
To book Joe Bunn: https://bunndjcompany.com/
To book Brian B: https://djbrianbofficial.com/
Joe’s Gear Finds on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/shop/djjoebunn
Brian’s Gear Finds on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/shop/djbrianbofficial
DJ Event Planner free demo: https://www.djeventplanner.com/signup.php
Brian B's Coaching Options: Https://www.thdjscreativeedge.com
what's up everybody? Welcome back to Beyond the DJ Booth Podcast. I'm Brian B and this is it's Joe Bunn.
Speaker 2:How you doing man, I'm good dude.
Speaker 1:Morning recording, once again.
Speaker 2:Morning recording batch content, both coming off gigs working hard, we're back, though. We're back for you guys. That's right. How long did you think we would last doing this real talk? Did you think we were in in it for the long haul? I figured at least a year I figured we were in it for the long haul I mean like that's kind of why I picked you. I think me and you both know people that we just couldn't do it with we'll leave it at that god bless him.
Speaker 2:Oh man, good stuff, good stuff did you have a good weekend I did, man, let's hear about yours, you, you were on tour I have been on tour for a while.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah we're in a season of life where we're like trying to make as much money as we can right now.
Speaker 2:I thought you were just about to say you were trying to have another baby. No, no, no, no, no, no, you're not having any more babies. We're done, we're done, we're done. One and done, one and done but things are getting expensive.
Speaker 1:My mortgage went up. Yeah, I guess. Got a new draft and it came out and I was like what just happened?
Speaker 2:we went on to refi. I thought it was, I thought it was time to refi brutal and then tuition's going up.
Speaker 1:So we just kind of got in this mindset of like I'm going to book as many shows as I can do oh wow, that would make sense that I can still manage. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know so I've been working doubles the last two weeks, which is rare for me. I don't really do that very often. It's been in Florida, where it's been hot, humid, already Soaking through shirts. By the end of it I'm just exhausted. And then this again right, and then get on a plane and come back, come back.
Speaker 1:I have switched that up. My thing was I would take the first flight home to be home with the family as soon as I could pointless, I'll come home.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, I'll be home at 9 am 10 am and I'm like I gotta take a napper because I just can't like, you know, I'm gonna do the dad thing and go to the park and the pumpkin patch and all the bullshit you do with a little girl.
Speaker 1:Right, do it do it, so I got to sleep a little bit. I just need like a power nap, but that ends up being about 3, 5 o'clock by the time I'm, like, ready to go.
Speaker 2:Then I'm fine, and then they're cooked and they don't want to do anything.
Speaker 1:We swapped it up last two weeks, which I don't think has actually worked. I've been leaving at 5 at night. The problem with that this is why I'm a big first flight out guy is you hit delays, hit delays. So I've been delayed the last two weekends. Right, supposed to be home at nine, home at 11, both times different airlines. It doesn't matter, it just stacks up you know.
Speaker 2:So first flight out. You have to do it.
Speaker 1:Stick to your old rules, yeah but the gigs are fine, the gigs are great. I feel like I'm in the zen state of just crushing these shows like I just can walk in and I feel so confident. Are you feeling that way with shows right now?
Speaker 2:Yes, we have changed the trajectory of the end of last year, which was a string of six shit balls to six no five, I think weddings now starting in end of March. That have been really good. Okay, all of them, all of them really good. We were in Charlotte Saturday and you know that's not our market, right, we have an office in Charlotte, right, brandon usually takes those. But it was family.
Speaker 2:I had done this kid's brother's wedding. He was married to a girl. I had done several members of her family this was I'm five deep into this family now, and were they all there as a guest? Um, no, the, the, obviously. The brother was the best man. His wife, like I said, I did her family's wedding. They weren't there, but she was like, oh, I gotta you know, let's take a selfie, I gotta send it to my sister or brother like, yeah, I had done a lot of people's. Okay, so that's how I get the gig end up working with a planner, was not it, bro? I'm not gonna say a name on here, but she just was nasty from the minute we walked in. I hate that and I don't know if it was because you know she has some dj that she always works with right, she's like who is this guy? Whatever. But man just an attitude from the start like give me an example um load in load in.
Speaker 2:She kind of walked us to where you know, pointed to the door, type thing, yeah. And then we kind of go down this series of corridors and I was like we get into the big ballroom and I'm like where exactly do you want me? I sent you a layout. Now again, keep in mind.
Speaker 2:She's three and a half feet from the door, like all you had to do is point it was a point, type thing yeah, and I was like, okay, like I just didn't, I didn't even look like, I never even got the layout out of my pocket, or like trying to find the email.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I was like I'm going to set up right here and if you don't like it, this is where we're going to be, type thing. And it was in the right spot, Thank God. But nasty like right out of the gate, then just kind of disappears.
Speaker 2:Oh, I hate that too, it's seven, 40, it's 740, whatever toaster's supposed to be at 720. And I started just like literally doing it myself. Like got the videographer, photographer. Are y'all ready? Where do you want them to sit? Where do you want the toaster? I'm like moving chairs around. I finally go over to her. I see her and I'm like we're running the toast. Okay, I'm like what am I doing? Right, what are you doing? Oh, wow, end of the night comes, sparkler departures, send everybody out. And the couple walks out and literally has their hand on each other. You know, like looking at me to play their private last dance. Now, let's say there's 165 people, 135 are outside, there's 30 still kind of blah, blah, blah in the back, keep in mind. Now the videographer has lit the dance floor up and did all night, which I fucking hate. It's absolutely daylight and then they had flipped on the house lights.
Speaker 1:So this isn't even sexy or private.
Speaker 2:And they're looking at me like play the song Iris. By the way, goo Goo Dolls, it's a Brian B karaoke staple. It could be Never played it, but anyway I play it and it's a long song.
Speaker 1:It's like five minutes. It's like five minutes, it's super long.
Speaker 2:And it's gotten to the point where he takes that breath and he goes and she comes over and goes start it over the planner, start it over. And I go. Huh, she goes, you started it before everybody was outside. I go, okay, and I walked over to the board like I was going to do something and then just walk back and I think it's on the 360 camera. I think I looked up at the 360 camera. I was like get the fuck out of here. Like what are you talking about? You know what I mean? Like they clearly wanted to start the song. There was no ambience in the room whatsoever, right, so I just played it and it's like I'm trying to get them to the thing. And then the bride comes over. We have a long conversation. She's like you fucking killed it. Blah, blah, blah yeah, he was more reserved.
Speaker 2:But he was like dude, so good, like we had to have you, they planned their wedding date around my schedule. Wow, that's how important it was that they had me. Then she was like I want to go change. She had this little cute white dress. So I'm like dude, if I had started it over blah, blah, number one, they would have been like why are you starting? Over a private last night it was just whatever man it.
Speaker 1:It put a a wedding into the b category right, she soured it, and was every vendor feeling that, or was it just? I didn't know anybody man, so I couldn't really be like yo, what's up with your girl?
Speaker 2:yeah, I talked to brandon. You know that owns my office.
Speaker 1:He was like I don't know who that is that's not a good start right, he's a good networker, right, right, anyway real quick, I real quick.
Speaker 2:I have a little show opener for you, A little DJ dilemma. We're going to call this Ready. It doesn't necessarily have to be speed round, but I thought it was a nice little icebreaker. These are ridiculous scenarios, but you have to pick a side and explain yourself Ready. You show up to a formal wedding and realize you've either forgotten your laptop or your suit. One has to say forgotten. Which is it? The one that's saying?
Speaker 1:forgotten is the suit. I'll figure it out. You're in shorts and a tee Formal. Yeah, I'm behind a booth, though that was mine. I won't be going out to the front, let's, you're not walking out in the audience.
Speaker 2:No, no, no. Okay, that was mine too. I mean because I could get through a wedding with, like, a phone or an iPad or something I have. You've heard that story about Bald Ed Island, but I'm the same way. I'm just back there in a pair of shorts and flops or whatever Just raw talking in a black tie wedding at like the Ritz Carlton. Right, okay, let's say you have a one set, like there's a band and they're putting on brian b.
Speaker 1:You can only play line dances or ballads. Which do you choose. And we're going line dances just because it's upbeat. I mean most of them are sure, sure. I can't imagine and I figure I got a 50 chance that they're gonna work right, that's what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:It's a crutch, it's always been a crutch. Yeah, okay, I got one more Ready. You accidentally double book yourself Oof One Thousand dollar local gig, other $5,000, but it's on a cruise and you hate boats and you can't swim.
Speaker 3:What are you doing I?
Speaker 1:guess I'm going the cheapie. I guess I'm going $1,000.
Speaker 3:If I can't swim you definitely can't swim.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that'd be a problem. Can you swim?
Speaker 2:I can, I can, I can. Saquon, can you swim?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, I can swim. Okay, okay, I can swim, but I'm not good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I can swim enough to save myself.
Speaker 1:Right, exactly Same.
Speaker 2:I can't tread water.
Speaker 3:This is a crazy quick story.
Speaker 2:When I was at Carolina, I graduated in 1994. You had to pass a swim test to graduate Everybody look it all, and I don't remember if it was like a donor's kid had died, you know, or something it's just a school thing.
Speaker 1:It was a school thing, not a state.
Speaker 2:Thing nope, not a state thing the university of north carolina, again, this was 1994, 30 some years ago.
Speaker 2:You had to pass a swim test and it was not stupid, but I I remember jumping in the pool and then I was like super competitive, so it was one lap down and back and there was other kids that jumped in so I tried to be fast and then when you got to the end of the lap you had to tread water for, let's say, I don't remember a minute or 45 seconds or what, but I'm so winded and out of shape, like back then I was I never even went to the gym that I was kind of like sinking a little bit like barely past the swim test what was the enrollment at that time?
Speaker 1:oh dude there was 20 000, was 20,000 kids there, so at some point they all got to get in that pool.
Speaker 2:Yes, 100%, is it?
Speaker 1:like a day where they go like swim test day.
Speaker 2:No, I think it was through the year and I probably waited until like the last day to do it, or whatever. You had to take a swim test in 1994 at the University of North. Carolina to get your diploma Crazy.
Speaker 1:Now I'm sure that's not the case anymore. Anyway, let's get into DJ shit. So you've been playing some gigs, any new music that you have been playing out, that you have had requested, that songs that you weren't maybe that familiar with, that have been working, anything that just kind of hits you. I've got a couple I'll share with you, but I thought I'd hit you first before I share some that have been doing well or what have been the bangers, regardless if they're new or not yeah, right, and then west dj's live last week right great job.
Speaker 2:By the way, they did a great job and I'll see a bunch of people there right, our friends, people, you know, people, I know, and I was walking down the street with, uh, even steve, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:And I look at him and I'm like I ain't gonna lie bro. Two, three saturdays in a row, that dynamite wordplay into don't stop believing has murdered, yeah, like. And people are looking at me like as if I did it, you know, and I just kind of like giving the thumbs up, like yeah, I did that. Yeah. And then what also destroyed on Saturday was I have a scooter edit of, and both of these songs were on the playlist Keep that in mind was a closer chain smokers into you know when she goes, smokers into you know when she goes. I played that blink 180.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, yeah, okay, yeah, yeah, and it goes into that transition of all the small things havoc, those were huge. Okay, the two word play kind of transition things that have been working really well for me, any new songs that have come out you know I'm the the worst at the new stuff yeah, like I knew to me it'd be like two years from now. I'm like like pink pony club is hot right now for us, like it'd be like two years from now I'm like Pink Pony Club is hot right now for us, Like that's the biggest song right now for us.
Speaker 1:Oh man.
Speaker 2:Randy played it three times for some gala or auction the other night Pink Pony Club. He was forced to Wow. It's like middle-aged housewives attack Wow and they were hot on Pink Pony Club. That's crazy, crazy. We're way behind. Where are you Bring me up to speed?
Speaker 1:I got five of them for you, five.
Speaker 3:Yeah, five tracks. They're small little edits.
Speaker 1:One is the new Callum Scott, I think is his name. He's got that song called Biblical and it's been slaying for me at dinner.
Speaker 2:It's normally a ballad, though it is.
Speaker 1:This is kind of the acoustic version For dinner For dinner.
Speaker 2:This is not a dance floor.
Speaker 1:This is a good one. If you're not playing it, you should Do. You want to hit a little bit of a?
Speaker 3:sample for us. So won't you give me tonight and the rest of your life. I want to have it all with you. I want to have it all with you.
Speaker 1:The original is good too, but the acoustic version is where it's at I'll be there by your side.
Speaker 3:I want to have it all with you. I want to have it all with you.
Speaker 1:So he was made, I think, famous with his song Dancing on my Own, the cover he did.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's how I know it.
Speaker 1:Yeah and then this came out and people have been loving it every time I play it.
Speaker 2:Ironically, I played Dancing on my Own during the dance set. There's a Tiesto edit of that.
Speaker 1:Yes, that's a great version I played that one Instead of the Robin version.
Speaker 2:Saturday they wanted the Callum Scott version.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it was the first time, whatever her name was oh, jordan Sparks Went crazy it did Okay it went off Finally. The first time I dropped it it was a doo-doo, but Saturday, it went off.
Speaker 1:So Janai's back in the game on edits. He's been sending us stuff and I've been trying to play a lot more upbeat on the walk into the reception and this is a newer song People are out in the cocktail.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and this is a newer song. People are out in the cocktail.
Speaker 1:Some other ballroom doors open and a lot of mine are outdoors right now. We're in outdoor season so everything is outdoors, so it's kind of got that almost like a pool party type. Feel yeah, yeah, yeah, summer, summer, summer. So that song Ordinary, which I'm in love with right now there's this version that Alex Warren kind of a British dude. So this is Janaiice, blend with satisfy your soul which is a I saw he sent me that yeah great version upbeat.
Speaker 1:People don't really know ordinary that well yeah but it's kind of one of those ones where it's just a happy-go-lucky feel yeah, like that stargazing how that got bigger and bigger and bigger yeah, see if you can tell you see yourself playing this. I think the horns and just the disco-y vibe as people are walking in, it's just groovy. Walking in, finding your seat, your table, getting out of the sun yeah, I love it, it's been massive it's doing so well for me. People come up to me like what's?
Speaker 1:this version and all this stuff and janice has been crushing in those like vibey tracks. So, speaking of stargazing, uh-huh, peak hour. Okay, with levels, our boys dafts. Uh-huh, drew and fuse and views. Put this together, goat like, okay, this smashes. Oh, you need to be playing peak hour. Peak hour, okay playing this Peak hour, peak hour. Okay, that chorus.
Speaker 3:Even kids know this song.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you don't even go into the verse, it's just the chorus over this. Yeah, this is great. If you're not playing that peak hour, you need to be. I love that. All right, another peak hour. Okay, a guy I saw on social, just random producer out of the country Okay, his name's DJ Spades. Don't know him, don't know him at all. Okay, I heard this idea and I was like, ooh, I like what you're going with this and I added an intro and outro to it.
Speaker 2:So it's his. It's his, okay, am.
Speaker 1:I wrong.
Speaker 2:Titanium Damn.
Speaker 1:You sent this to me, but I hadn't listened to it yet. All right. Give it a little Kind of unexpected, yeah, but it goes so well. Damn. I played it this. It was just Went, crazy Went crazy Damn it works great.
Speaker 3:It's just that they're both kind of emotional songs, you know yeah.
Speaker 1:But it brings back, am I Wrong? Which is a great track anyways, especially in the summer, you know, when it's like hot outside and people are just. I do love titanium. Oh, it's such a good song. I'm walking down this road of mine, this road, that I'll go home. So am I wrong? Woo, thinking that we could be something for real, you got to play this. Yeah, I love that. All right, one more Okay. This one smashed for me this week. This was on the request list. It's the. I'm Like a Bird.
Speaker 2:This is.
Speaker 1:Nelly Furtado.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I didn't have a good version of it Me neither and I was like ah, the original, just I don't know how I'm going to fit this in, Okay.
Speaker 2:So I was on the hunt.
Speaker 1:Okay, so this is Beat Breakers Patsy, something new. Edit peak hour. It just worked so well. People didn't even know it was coming and it just works great, Okay.
Speaker 3:Late night house set. People are like where is he going, Damn. I used to love her.
Speaker 1:This one's going to go a little longer because you got to hear the build. It's kind of got like a sky full of stars kind of sound to it. Yes, I'm like a bird, I only fight for you. I only fight for you. But like one of your last songs yeah, you know what I mean. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that like anthemic.
Speaker 2:Yes, I need this feeling To end the night I don't know where my soul is.
Speaker 1:It's on a must-play. I don't know where my soul is. I was like I'll just end up on your must-play. I'm like a bird, I only fight for you. I'll just end up on your muscle. But not this edit. That's big. This is what people were just raging to this track. I'm like, I'm like a bird.
Speaker 2:You didn't preview them, or anything.
Speaker 3:No.
Speaker 1:Like tell them.
Speaker 2:you're going to drop a different edit. No, no, I was taking a gamble. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Because, it was on their must play Sure, sure, but I'm like there's no way I can fit the original in there in a good spot, no no, based on where it's at it, it's almost a dinner track or something Damn dude. So I'll send you some of those edits. But if you're not playing those, get those on the record pools. I'll try to list it on the episode.
Speaker 2:My boy John Hanna you know Throwback Brothers. Yeah, love him, I sent him these words by Natasha Bedingfield you know, that's my girlfriend the Badger version.
Speaker 1:Nope, I sent him the original.
Speaker 2:I don't know if he's going to be able to put it out on DMS, you know he's on DMS, but he made it, so remind me to send it to you. All right these words Want to make more money at every event. Meet S-Start. You create a better guest experience and upsell your clients with ease. Everything simple to set up, fun to use and designed to boost your bookings and your bottom line. Join their membership to unlock the best pricing and start stacking value at every gig. Go to S-Startcom right now and book your free demo.
Speaker 1:We got two more things.
Speaker 2:What about what Ashley, uh, the Joe, the Joe, what Ashley's calling Joe's journey? You want to talk about that, okay.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I was going to apologize, pre-apologize to the audience and or y'all.
Speaker 1:Cause you get angry.
Speaker 2:And guess I was shitty today to y'all. Like just a nasty person because, uh, may 1st, so we're recording the fifth Cinco de Mayo today. No, no starch, no sugar. Like I've quit everything, I love everything.
Speaker 1:My routine was and you're a routine guy.
Speaker 2:For those that don't know, the routine king yes, yeah, I mean routine king. It's got up make coffee at home half and half, which is not that bad, actually. Tons of sugar, sip that one, but go straight to the coffee shop so that one became my side cup At the coffee shop. Vanilla skim latte, again tons of milk, tons of sugar. Blueberry muffin, chocolate chip, scone, carrot cake, scone, some sort of thing.
Speaker 2:Those are all starches, starch and just mad sugar. There was just delicious crystals on top of the actual blueberry muffin. Or go to brew, same coffee order, but. Or a yogurt parfait, granola coated with sugar honey. I would even take the honey bottle and from them, give me the fucking bottle. Like you're not doing enough, add more. Or they have this damn um peanut butter and banana and honey toast. Wow, god bless, I'm just crying thinking about it. Then, you know, lunch we'd get Jersey Mike's or something here, some sort of sandwich with a giant roll, or fries, or Chick-fil-A, or whatever Dinner would be, you know, pseudo healthy, but there was some sort of pasta bread, blah, blah, blah. Oh, and then during the day I would have, let's say, probably one coke or one sweet tea and I grew up on sweet tea, like I don't forget about.
Speaker 1:And then then at three or four the bull, eight ounce red bull it's just, dude, I didn't see you going down that path, though like I could see mornings going that way, so let me.
Speaker 2:Let me get to where I got here. One, nothing I like, and I work out hard.
Speaker 1:I know you do, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Like I go hard Four days a week.
Speaker 2:So you can give yourself a little bit of, or you thought I thought Exactly, and up until I was probably maybe 50 or late 40s, I could do that and I was just like, oh, I'm counterattacking this bullshit food and sugar with these workouts. Right, may have been true, and then I don't know, let's just call it 50. I hit this wall and like nothing I do now makes any progress. I just kind of look the same. I don't really weigh myself, but I can tell my weight's, about the same. I look in the mirror, I look about the same.
Speaker 2:And then Dom is like you need to try this function health thing, cause I kept getting sick and I've been sick. On this podcast. I've talked about being sick doing weddings. I just felt like I was getting sick too much. We talked about this on a podcast and in a in a regular doctor's physical for those of you that are watching is bullshit. They're going to test about three or four things. Oh, your vitamin D is low, you know whatever. Whatever. It's garbage this health and I'll. I'll put a link and I don't. We're not getting paid by them.
Speaker 2:And it was 500 and I had to go two times to give blood to you know whatever recommended lab core type place. They recommended and a urine sample the second time. But, dude, these results came back and they weren't good. There were 85 things they tested for. 11 were out of range and so the good news was they were like your biometric age is 43, so 10 years younger than I am. But here are the things like that are concerning, and some of it was this like you're basically pre-diabetic and I'm like how the fuck am I pre-diabetic?
Speaker 2:you know like it's not another history, my family, family um, nobody's ever said anything was wrong, other than my vitamin D was a little low, but that's probably because I'm indoors a lot, dude, it wasn't scary to the point where I did this, but it was like man, you need to get off sugar, like it's just. It's like a drug to me and I don't know any way to do this, but to go cold turkey. Somebody's like, oh, you should just quit. You know the, the cokes and the and the tea and the red bull. And I'm like man, I'm just going full on. So you just like go in the closet, throw it all out. Yeah, go look in that refrigerator and I has green tea, there's un, there's unsweet.
Speaker 1:So how was the first?
Speaker 2:day. The first five days have been hard, but day one, day one was ridiculous, dude. I was like climbing up the wall. I had a headache. Day two was kind of the same. How are you changing your routine now? Morning is now a smoothie. Scoop of protein powder, eight ounces unsweet almond milk, a scoop of frozen berries, no caffeine whatsoever. A handful of spinach yeah, caffeine, I'm still on caffeine. You're doing coffee.
Speaker 2:In that hand is a smoothie, and then I make my coffee, but I only put literally a splash of half and half, and then I change out the sweetener to monk fruit. It looks like sugar, it tastes like sugar. It ain't sugar, though, and it's on the plan. I'll literally take a spoon and put it in a little bag. Bam, put it in a little bag, bam.
Speaker 3:We've been doing.
Speaker 2:Lunch I've been salad chicken. I got to find something else. I can't do the salad chicken every day, yeah. And then dinner I'm going to try these factor meals. Oh yeah, pre-made. It has to fall in the category of like clean or keto or paleo or something.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So those came last night. So I'm going to start that. Weddings are going to be tough. I took a cooler. I had a green apple in the cooler. I had some of those heart-skimmed string cheese sticks. Those are on the plan. The jerky there's certain jerky ones that don't have sugar and stuff. You think it's going to be more expensive too.
Speaker 2:That's the other thing with these things, I always feel like when you're going on these like— I don't think it matters to me, I think that's Like not even on the radar, dude, I don't know man. I mean, if I go to Yellow Dog in the morning, I get a vanilla skim latte and some muffin. I guarantee it was $11, $12.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Same thing at Brew. Yeah, so the smoothie I'm making at home and I'm just skipping going there. It became just a habit, right, I'm going to get up and go to one end of the counter, like I was easy to find.
Speaker 1:If you wanted to kill me, you know what I mean, so you're not even going to the coffee shop at all Nah, zero, nah.
Speaker 2:I sent Saquon during the wedding. We saw a Starbucks out the window and he walked over there and he got me a cold brew with a dash of cinnamon and a little bit of almond milk. Okay, I choked it down.
Speaker 1:We quit the sugar in the coffee. We went to Liquid Stevia.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've tried Stevia. I can't, you can't do it. I can't do Stevia. Truvia, Movia, Sluvia, the drops. Try this monk fruit next time when you run out.
Speaker 1:You can get that at the normal store.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't know, I Amazoned it.
Speaker 1:I Amazoned it.
Speaker 2:It was a little satchel, and then I ordered the packets now so I can go mobile with it. All right, in case I need it, I'll check it. Yeah, monk fruit, anyway.
Speaker 1:And are you so? First five days are rough, but are you feeling? I don't feel any different yet, man and I.
Speaker 2:But is your energy gone? Is your energy up? I feel like my energy is up. I haven't really felt like super caffeine depleted. Now again, I was still drinking a coffee in the morning. Yesterday. I did do Starbucks same thing cold brew, dash of cinnamon, unsweet almond milk. But I'm you know, I tried the green tea in a can that's the same size as the Red Bull can, yeah, so I thought I could kind of trick myself. And also those Topo Chico sparkling waters are on the plan. So I've been trying to, and they don't have caffeine, but I'm just trying to trick myself into that habit of like going in there at three or four going in the fridge and getting that can?
Speaker 2:I don't know man, I got to just stick it out.
Speaker 1:What's your plan? To like see where you're at progress wise, You're going to do this test. $500 test again.
Speaker 2:It's paid for in six months of retest Okay, so I think that will be a big determination. I also think I'm going to lose a lot of weight, and that wasn't my goal. Right, I could stand to lose 10, 15 pounds probably. Yeah, I think most people can say that, but it was not my goal and I won't buy a scale because I'll become very obsessive about it, right scale, because I'll become very obsessive about it, right?
Speaker 1:so you're talking october retests?
Speaker 2:yeah, right before you get all the way through the summer, that's gonna be interesting I know.
Speaker 2:But like, look, it's like you can still have some drinks vodka, soda, lime or toboggan chico, that we're both on the plan and I don't drink a ton. I might drink one day a week, right, right, and those are easy to drink wherever, like today's single to mayo. We're supposed to go to this taco place. I'm not going to do the queso and the salsa and the chips and I do. I used to destroy that shit and I'll probably say, look, don't, I don't even want tacos. Just make me a bowl with, like, ground beef. Yeah, some vegetables in it. Yeah, I'll eat that. Yeah, everything is about modifying and I'll be honest with you, man, this entire thing and I know this episode is probably running long, but hopefully it'll kind of help some people has been chat, gpt, the entire thing. I don't have a nutritionist, I'll look.
Speaker 2:Once I put in all the results, I said what? Like walk me through what's going on here, and then it. And then I was like, okay, now walk me through what I should and shouldn't be eating, and then every day I'll go go, I'll think of something else, I'll go. What's a good substitute for my Red Bulls? Oh, here are the things that will work for you, you know, and give you that boost. What can I eat at Panera? What can I eat at Chick-fil-A, what can I eat at Village Deli, fresco, cafe, carolina? All the here's what you needed, and so I took them all and I just put them in an app in my phone and I'm like, when I go out to eat, if I go to Chipotle, here's what I need to get.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's interesting.
Speaker 2:It's all AI generated Like. Here's what you should be eating.
Speaker 1:That's great.
Speaker 2:I don't know man, check back with me on the next episode. Oh, running through here kicking holes in the wall then maybe just give me a goddamn. Snickers or something. Anyway, do you want to do the question? Might as well Might as well, do a question, alright, you do this one, alright, brian.
Speaker 1:B here, yes, interrupting yet another stellar podcast episode. But don't worry, this is a value add, not just me rambling. Have you enjoyed the music finds I share on here? You know the ones that Joe pretends he discovered first. Well, if you didn't know, I've got a Patreon where you can grab not only song lists but also exclusive edits of mine Yep, custom tracks. That'll set you apart from every DJ still rinsing the same tired wedding set. Want fresh music suggestions every month? Go to patreoncom forward. Slash DJ Brian B official. Again, that's patreoncom forward. Slash DJ Brian B official. You'll be the DJ.
Speaker 1:Everyone's trying to figure out how you keep your sets so fire and planners will start nudging their couples your way. And if that's not a hard enough sell, I don't know what is All right. Back to the episode before Joe tries to convince us that Sweet Caroline is actually a banger. This is our boy Chris Davis. Yeah, rigby, idaho. What is your process of tagging music and building general playlists like? Do you like using general tags like genre, or use like first dance, open doors, et cetera, or vibe, party, hype, chill pool or some combination? Do you like putting them in crates or just keep them tagged?
Speaker 2:I can give a short answer man go ahead I don't. I don't use tags. I've never taken the time to do it.
Speaker 2:Everything is just crated by genre or um it's basically four master crates and then sub genres under that. So I think it goes cocktails and dinner and then there's some sub crates under that. It is most played which is a smart crate in Serato. It is miscellaneous genres, which would be, you know, throwback, edm, pop, punk, disco, beach music, blah, blah, blah, and then usually the couples playlist. I'm not the tag guy. I never go search for a tag. I don't do vibe party, hip hop, nineties, whatever, whatever, like if, if I need that stuff it's crated in 90s hip-hop, 2000s hip-hop, right, you know, disco, whatever you're, you're a combo, I'm a combo okay, okay.
Speaker 1:So I've got crates, yeah, that are done by, I guess, feel and genre, yeah, so like, in other words, I've got like decades, 70s, 80s, 90s, whatever, yeah. But then I also have another one that's like by feel, so it's like early night might be one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, late night. So like just different feels as well. But I also do use the tags for certain things, like right now I would say one of my biggest ones is Afro house. It's kind of like that chill open music, but I don't know if the genre is going to stick long, so I've been using hashtag afro house just to easily find it. A bunch of stuff like that, um funk edits. I use that a lot. It's not just even steve doing them, but there's other people doing them too. So like just to have like that opening stuff to quickly get to it, and it's not necessarily in a crate, it's just kind of done by tag. So there's two tag editors I was going to throw out there to you that I've been using. Um, the first is meta datics I think it's called m-e-t-a-d-a-t-i-c-s good one and then tag editor is another one I'm using. So tag editor is the one actually I'm using now all the time you ever use my music library tools the guy in england I've used his before.
Speaker 1:I mean both of them are paid for.
Speaker 2:You have to pay for them, but it's one time. No, yeah, man, If it's a one-off, it's not a subscription. I think it's totally worth it Right.
Speaker 1:The reason why I like these tag editors is because you can batch them all. So, in other words, if I had a whole crate, I wanted to have the sameato or whatever else. It would take forever, so you've got to use a tag editor. If you're trying to do that, good stuff.
Speaker 2:Hope this helps. Yeah, man, that's good stuff. Thank you so much for that, and thank you, chris Davis from Rigby, idaho. Let's wrap this one up. I know it was a long one, but you but um you know we gotta thank our sponsors, yeah that's true. That's true. What would we be doing without dj event planner? They are our crm of choice and guess who I saw. Guess who I saw in midwest djs our boys from s start our boys from s start. Okay, my man cp, all right, you haven't met him in person yet.
Speaker 1:I haven't we, we have a cp.
Speaker 2:Cp is a good dude man. He he's got great energy. He's always smiling, he's always happy, he loves to talk about his product, he loves to show people the demo Like he's just a great dude man. So shout out S-Start. They have a whole platform or series of apps that are great for your couples. So S-Start, e-s-s-t-a-r-tcom. Thanks guys. Thanks for listening. We'll be back next week and every single Wednesday with our podcast. See you Later, bye.
